Plastic Logic: Bored of waiting in the Que

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Plastic Logic has announced that it has ceased development on its Que ProReader as a result of the market dramatically changing.

The device, which had a 10.7-inch screen, was designed to be more than just your average ereader - it was geared towards reading newspapers, letting you check your email and calendar, and reading and annotating files including PDFs and Microsoft Office documents.

So, the question arises - is Plastic Logic's Que the first high-profile casualty of the iPad boom?

After all, when the Cambridge based firm announced the device at CES in January 2010, the iPad wasn't yet public knowledge. Jobs and the gang had probably just begun putting together the slides for its keynote launch at the end of that month.

So after a series of delays and postponements, maybe Plastic Logic decided that a glorified ereader, costing $799, could not compete in the Apple dominated tablet arena.

If Plastic Logic's CEO Richard Archuleta's comments are anything to go by then that may well be the case. He said:

"We recognize the market has dramatically changed, and with the product delays we have experienced, it no longer make sense for us to move forward with our first generation electronic reading product".

"This was a hard decision, but is the best one for our company, our investors and our customers".

However, Plastic Logic has announced that it plans to release a second-gen ProReader to market in the future.

Archuleta stated: "We plan to take the necessary time needed to re-enter the market as we refocus, redesign and retool for our next generation ProReader product. We continue to perfect our core plastic electronic technology and manufacturing processes that are central to our product's unique value proposition".

"We remain the industry's leader in the development of plastic electronics technology for commercial purposes and are continuing to actively advance this technology in our labs and in our manufacturing facility".

Whether that device sees a full public launch remains to be seen, however.

Is there room for the second generation Que in the tablet or ereader market? Or should Plastic Logic focus on new devices? Give us your say using the comments underneath.